Assembly of substructure-constructing components and method of constructing tall substructures



3,333,377 METHOD Aug. 1, 1967 H. J. WOOLSLAYER ASSEMBLY OF SUBSTRUCTURE-CONSTRUCTING COMPONENTS AND OF CONSTRUCTING TALL SUBSTRUCTURES 2, 1965 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug.

ATTORNEYS.

Aug. 1, 1967 OF CONSTRUCTINC- TALL SUBSTRUCTURES 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 2', 1965 Q a A l D HI a H. J. WOOLSLAYER ASSEMBLY OF SUBSTfiUCTURE-CONSTRUCTING COMPONENTS AND METHOD INVEMURS.

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INVENTORS. HOMER J. WOOL-SLAYER CEC/L JEN/0N5 JOS'P/l 1Q. WOOLSLAYEQ ERMA/4.6AMP5ELL ,%lfl%w.

ATTORNEVS United States Patent ASSEMBLY OF SUBSTRUCTURE-CONSTRUCTING COMPONENTS AND METHOD OF CONSTRUCT- ING TALL SUBSTRUCTURES Homer J. Woolslayer, Cecil Jenkins, and Joseph R. Woolslayer, Tulsa, Okla., and Erwin A. Campbell, Wexford, Pa., assignors to Lee C. Moore Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Filed Aug. 2, 1965, Ser. No. 476,599 11 Claims. (Cl. 52116) This invention relates to the art of drilling oil wells, and more particularly to substructures and the manner of erecting them and mounting drawworks and masts thereon.

Considerably oil well drilling is now done by masts mounted on tall substructures, by which is meant substructures that are substantially taller than the height of truck beds used in the drilling industry. When a short or low substructure is used, it is a simple matter to skid the drawworks off a truck or trailer and onto the top of the substructure. There is no particular problem in moving the feet of a reclining mast into position for connection to shoes on such a substructure. On the other hand, when the substructure is tall, in some cases the working floor being at least 25 feet above the ground, it is difiicult to lift the drawworks to the top of the substructure and to raise the feet of the mast up to the shoes. The most common procedure for accomplishing these things is to use long ramps leading from the ground to the top of the substructure, but they are expensive and have no utility except when a substructure is first assembled or is about to be dismantled.

It is among the objects of this invention to provide a substructure which is made from prefabricated sections that can easily be assembled and erected at the drilling site, which has a portion that receives the drawworks at a low level and then is elevated to the top of the substructure, which avoids excessive lengths for the pump belt and the drive chain of the drawworks, and which allows the feet of the mast to be raised to the top of the substructure simply by operating the drawworks.

In accordance with this invention a drawworks-supporting unit is disposed in the central portion of a substructure base, at each end of which there is an upright substructure end frame resting on the base. The bottoms of the end frames are hinged to the base so that the frames can be swung from upright position to reclining position extending away from each other when it is desired to dismantle the substructure. Means are connected to the drawworks-supporting unit and to the tops of the upright end frames for receiving lifting lines to raise the supporting unit, after drawworks have been mounted on it, to the tops of the frames where it is then detachably connected to the end frames to assemble the components just mentioned into a substructure. One end ICE FIG. 4 is a diagram showing how the lifting line at the back of the substructure is strung;

FIG. 5 is a side view showing the drawworks-supporting unit raised to its upper position and a reclining mast about to be raised;

FIG. 6 is a plan view of the substructure;

FIG. 7 is a view of its right-hand end; and

FIG. 8 is a fragmentary vertical section taken on line VIII-VIII of FIG. 6.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings, a substructure base is shown which is formed from two rela tively narrow mats 1 disposed in parallel relation and spaced a considerable distance apart, the mats being connected by a pair of parallel tie braces 2 and a diagonal brace 3. At each end of the base an end frame reclines along the ground. The front end frame is formed from two laterally spaced reclining rectangular columns 4 constructed from structural steel elements and having their front ends rigidly connected by a removable spreader 5 that will form a pipe setback support in the assembled substructure. The lower corners of the rear ends of the two columns are detachably pivotally connected in shoes 6 near the front or outer edge of the front mat. The rear end frame likewise is formed from reclining rectangular columns 7 rigidly 'connected in their rear ends by a removable spreader 8 that will support a drawworks engine after the substructure has been assembled. The front ends of the columns are 'detachably pivoted in shoes 9 near the rear edge of the rear mat.

The two end frames are erected by swinging them upwardly toward each other so that each will rest on one of the mats. The front frame then is pinned to shoes 11 near the inner edge of the front mat, and the rear frame is pivoted to similar shoes 12 on the other mat. The end frames can be swung up in any suitable manner, a convenient way of doing so being by a line 13 (FIG. 2) temporarily connected to their lower faces and extending out and up over a gin pole on a gin pole truck 14 which carries a winch to which the line is attached. After the end frames have been swung up to upright position they will apear as shown in FIGS.

Preferably, before the end frames are swung up to upright position a drawworks-supporting unit 16 is assembled on the base or ground between the end frames, although the unit could be placed on the base after the end frames have been erected, if desired. As shown in FIG. 6, this unit is formed from parallel structural steel side frames 17, connected by a suitable spreader 18. The height of the supporting unit is such that a drawworks 19 can be skidded onto it from a truck without any trouble. Mounted on the corners of the unit are shoes, the front shoes 21 being for the front feet of of the substructure may be provided with one or more steps, on which an engine or engines can be mounted for driving the drawworks on top of the substructure and a pump on the ground. At the opposite end of the substructure lines are connected to the drawworks substructure and feet of a reclining mast in front of the substructure in such a manner as to lift the feet into shoes on top of the substructure.

The preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a somewhat diagrammatic plan view of the substructure base and end frames in reclining position;

FIG. 2 is a side view of the structure shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a more complete side view of the erected end frames and the drawworks-supporting unit between them resting on the base;

a gin pole (not shown) and a mast 22 (FIG. 5), and the rear shoes 23 being for the rear feet of the gin pole. For a purpose to be explained presently, it is desirable to make the rear end frame shorter than the front end frame by a distance approximately equal to the height of the drawworks-supporting unit.

It will be seen that in order to' complete the assembly of the substructure from its various components described thus far, the drawworks-supporting unit 16 must be lifted from its position in FIG. 3 to the tops of the end frames and attached to them there as shown in FIG. 5. In doing this, the drawworks is raised by unit 16, so that the problem of mounting drawworks on a tall substructure is solved. The unit 16 is elevated by lifting lines at its opposite ends. For this purpose, a pair of laterally spaced 3 above the sheaves at its bottom. The axes of the upper sheaves extend transversely of the substructure.

Since it is desired to raise the bottom of the drawworkssupporting unit to the top of the rear end frame, the two u-pper sheaves are mounted on posts 28 temporarily connected to the top of that frame, as shown in FIG. 3. A third upper sheave 29 also is supported by one of the posts parallel to the sheave beside it. As shown in FIG. 4, a line 31 has one end anchored to the upper part of the other post, from which the line extends down around the nearest sheave in unit 16 and then up and over the nearest upper sheave 27. From there the line extends down around the underlying frame sheave 26 and across the frame to the other lower frame sheave and then up and over upper sheave 27 above it. From there the line extends down around the nearest sheave 25 and then back up and over the remaining upper sheave 29 and downward under a further sheave 32 mounted in the back of the end frame and from which the line extends rear- :vardly to a suitable winch or the like for pulling the At the front end of the substructure another line 34 may be reeved in the same manner around sheaves 35 in the front end of the drawworks-supporting unit, another pair 36 in the bottom of the front end frame, three sheaves 37 journaled in the top of the frame and a final sheave 38 in the lower front part of the frame. To raise unit 16, these two lines 31 and 34 are pulled or reeled in simultaneously so that they will lift the unit. When it reaches the tops of the end frames, the front end of the unit is pinned to vertically spaced brackets 40 projecting from the back of the front end frame, while the lower rear corners of the unit are pinned to brackets 41 connected to the upper front corners of the rear end frame.

Rotary table supports 42 then are lifted into place and connected to spreaders 5 and 18. It also is desirable to strengthen unit 16 by connecting inclined braces 43 to the front of the rear end frame and to the bottom of the unit beneath the drawworks.

A drawworks engine 45 then is lifted to the top of the rear end frame and connected by the usual chain drive 46 to the drawworks. Since the top of this end frame is considerably lower than the top of the rest of the substructure, the engine does not have to be lifted as high as otherwise would be the case. If a second engine 47 is required, it should 'be mounted on a supporting shelf 48 that has been attached to the back of the rear end frame about half way bet-ween its top and bottom. This engine can be connected with the upper one by a chain drive 49. It also can be connected to a pump 50 on the ground by means of a belt 51. It will be seen that with this arrangement the chain drive can be broken up into two relatively short lengths to avoid the disadvantages of a long chain. Also, the belt drive for the pump is much shorter than it would be if both engines were mounted at the top of the rear end frame or on the drawworks-supporting unit.

The substructure is dismantled by reversing the assembly procedure just explained. After the end frames have been swung down to the ground, they can be disconnected from the base mats, from which braces 2 and 3 then can be removed.

After a substructure has been assembled in accordance with this invention, with the drawworks and engines in place on it, the drilling mast 22 is assembled in a reclining position along the ground in front of the substructure as shown in FIG. 5. The mast feet are the same distance apart as front shoes 21 on the substructure, and the mast is positioned with its feet in line with the shoes but of course at the bottom of the substructure. Each bifurcated foot of the mast contains a vertical sheave 56. The two sheaves rest on the opposite sides of a sling 57 formed from a cable doubled on itself. The ends of the cable are attached to the front shoes. The other end of the sling is looped over the hook 58 of a travelling block in the mast. This block is connected in the usual way by lines to a crown block at the head of the mast, and the fast line 59 extends from the crown block back to the drawworks. The dead line 60 extends back through the mast and up around a sheave 61 journaled at one side of the heel of the mast. From there the dead line extends up and over a sheave 62 supported in one of the front columns 4 and extends down to an anchor drum 63 mounted in the bottom of the column.

When the drawworks is operated to reel in the fast line, the traveling block is pulled toward the crown block and thereby causes the sling to raise the feet of the mast up the front of the substructure. During this operation the sling serves as a vertical track for sheaves 56. As soon as the sheaves reach the top of the substructure, the fast line pulls the mast rearwardly to move its feet into the front shoes, where they can be pinned in the usual manner. After that, continued operation of the drawworks will cause the mast to swing upward on the shoes to erect position in a well-known manner, where it can be supported by a conventional gin pole (not shown) that has been connected to the front and rear shoes.

It will be seen that with this invention the components of a substructure of any height can be quickly assembled and that drawworks can be mounted on a supporting portion of the substructure before that portion is elevated. After the drawworks has been raised to the top of the substructure, it can be used for lifting the foot of a reclining mast up to shoes on top of the substructure. This eliminates all need for ramps for first moving the drawworks up to the top of a tall substructure and then raising the foot of the mast to the same height.

According to the provisions of the patent statutes, we have explained the principle of our invent-ion and have illustrated and described what we now consider to represent its best embodiment. However, we desire to have it understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described.

We claim:

1. An assembly of su-bstructure-constructing components comprising a substructure base, a drawworks-supporting unit above the central portion of the base, an upright substructure end frame at each end of said unit resting on the base, means hinging the bottoms of the end frames to the base so that the frames can be swung from upright position to reclining position extending away from each other for dismantling the substructure, means connected to said supporting unit and the tops of the upright end frames for receiving lifting lines to raise the unit to the tops of the frames, and means for detachably connecting the raised unit to the end frames.

2. An assembly according to claim 1, in which said base includes a rigid mat beneath each of said end frames, the the mats being spaced apart, and bracing members extending across the space between the mats and detachably connected at their ends to the mats.

3. An assembly of substructure-constructing components comprising a substructure base, a drawworks-supporting unit above the central portion of the base, upright substructure end frames at the front and rear ends of said unit resting on the base, means hinging the bottoms of the end frames to the base so that the frames can be swung from upright position to reclining position extending away from each other for dismantling the substructure, the front end frame being taller than the rear frame by substantially the height of said supporting unit, means connected to said unit and the tops of the upright end frames for receiving lifting lines to raise the unit to the tops of the frames, and means for detachably connecting the raised supporting unit to the end frames in a position wherein the top of the unit is at substantially the same level as the top of the taller end frame, the top of the shorter end frame forming a drawworks engine support.

4. An assembly agcording to claim 3, including a shelf projecting from the back of said rear frame for supporting an engine below the top of that frame.

5. An assembly according to claim 4, in which said taller end frame includes a pair of laterally spaced corner columns rigidly connected at their upper ends by a pipe setback support, and the other end frame includes a pair of laterally spaced corner columns rigidly connected at their upper ends by means forming said drawworks engine support.

6. An assembly of substructure-constructing components comprising a substructure base, a drawworks-supporting unit above the central portion of the base, an upright substructure end frame at each end of said unit resting on the base, means hinging the bottoms of the end frames to the base so that the frames can be swung from upright position to reclining position extending away from each other for dismantling the substructure, a pair of laterally spaced sheaves mounted in each end of said supporting unit, sheaves mounted in the lower part of each end frame, all of said sheaves having their axes extending lengthwise of said unit, a pair of laterally spaced sheaves supported by the upper part of each end frame at an angle to the underlying sheaves, a third sheave supported by the upper part of each end frame beside one of said upper sheaves, a lifting line at each end of the apparatus having an end anchored to the upper part of the adjoining end frame beside the other sheave of said pair of upper sheaves and extending down around the nearest sheave in said supporting unit and up and over said other upper sheave and then down. around the underlying frame sheave and across the frame to the other lower frame sheave and up and over said one upper sheave and down around the remaining lower sheave and then up and over said third sheave and downward and outward for attachment to pulling means, whereby when the two lines are pulled in unison they will raise the drawworks supporting unit to the tops of the end frames, and means for detachably connecting the raised unit to the end frames.

7. An assembly according to claim 6, in which one of said end frames is taller than the other by substantially the height of said supporting unit, and means are mounted on top of the shorter end frame supporting said three sheaves above it at substantially the same level as the three sheaves at the upper part of the taller end frame.

8. The combination with a tall substructure having a ward away from the substructure when the drawworks is operated, whereby to cause the sling to lift said sheaves to the top of the substructure to raise the mast feet up to said shoes.

9. A method of constructing a tall substructure with a drawworks on top of it, comprising placing a substructure base on the ground, laying a substructure end frame on its face beyond each end of the base, hinging the inner ends of the frames to the base ends on parallel axes, placing a drawworks-supporting unit between the frames, mounting a drawworks on said unit, swinging the two frames upward toward each other into parallel upright positions, stringing lifting lines between said unit and the tops of the upright end frames, pulling on said lines to lift said unit with the drawworks to the tops of the frames, and fastening the raised drawworks-supporting unit to the end frames.

10. A method of mounting a drawworks and the foot of a mast in an elevated position, comprising placing a substructure base on the ground, laying a substructure end frame on its face beyond each end of the base and hinging the inner ends of the frames to the base ends on parallel axes, placing a drawworks-supporting unit between the frames, mounting a drawworks on said unit, swinging the two frames upward toward each other into parallel upright positions, stringing lifting lines between said unit and the tops of the upright end frames, pulling on said lines to lift said unit with the drawworks to the tops of the frames, fastening the raised drawworks-supporting unit to the end frames to form a substructure, placing a reclining mast along the ground at one end of the substructure with the foot of the mast adjacent one of said upright end frames, stringing lines between the drawworks and the mast and the top of the substructure in a manner to lift the foot of the mast to the top of the substructure when the drawworks is operated to pull said last-mentioned lines, operating the drawworks, and then hinging said lifted foot to the top of the substructure so that the hinged mast can be swung up to upright position on the substructure.

11. A method according to claim 9, in which said lastmentioned lines include a sling fastened to the top of the substructure and extending down under the foot of the mast and attached to a travelling block in the mast.

References Cited FOREIGN PATENTS 178,884 1954 Austria. 502,137 1920 France. 701,102 1941 Germany.

FRANK L. ABBOTT, Primary Examiner. R. A. STENZEL, Assistant Examiner. 

1. AN ASSEMBLY OF SUBSTRUCTURE-CONSTRUCTING COMPONENTS COMPRISING A SUBSTRUCTURE BASE, A DRAWWORKS-SUPPORTING UNIT ABOVE THE CENTRAL PORTION OF THE BASE, AN UPRIGHT SUBSTRUCTURE END FRAME AT EACH END OF SAID UNIT RESTING ON THE BASE, MEANS HINGING THE BOTTOMS OF THE END FRAMES TO THE BASE SO THAT THE FRAMES CAN BE SWUNG FROM UPRIGHT POSITION TO RECLINING POSITION EXTENDING AWAY FROM EACH OTHER FOR DISMANTLING THE SUBSTRUCTURE, MEANS CONNECTED TO SAID SUPPORTING UNIT AND THE TOPS OF THE UPRIGHT END FRAME FOR RECEIVING LIFTING LINES TO RAISE THE UNIT TO THE TOPS OF THE FRAMES, AND MEANS FOR DETACHABLY CONNECTING THE RAISED UNIT TO THE END FRAMES. 